UK Amateur Radio Enthusiast Creates UK National News Coverage after Contact with International Space Station

A UK radio Amateur recently created a media frenzy when he made an Amateur radio contact with an astronaut on the International Space Station. Adrian Lane 2E0SDR got some great newspaper and television publicity for the hobby when he worked Kjell Lindgren KO5MOS operating the ISS amateur radio station….and he made the call using an Icom IC-2730 VHF/UHF Dual Band Mobile Transceiver.

Adrian normally uses his Amateur radio equipment to talk to fellow operators from his shack/shed. He said, ‘I enjoy making contact with Amateur radio operators, around the world, especially on HF using the QRP equipment I have built over the years. Alas with family commitments, I no longer have much time for home-brewing and have recently gone for Icom Equipment, as it is a name that I trust.’

Being on NASA’s mailing list, he was notified that the International Space Station would be passing over his home in Coleford, Gloucestershire. He plotted its route and worked out the four-minute “contact window” when it would pass by 200 miles above at 18,500mph.

Adrian sent out a call using his callsign 2E0SDR and to his delight a US astronaut answered back to welcome him aboard. The pair chatted for 50 seconds before the station shot out of range.

Adrian said, 'I basically asked who he was and how things were in space that day. It was such a rush. I was buzzing. It's not every day you get to talk to some guy out in space, and I did.'

Adrian met with a huge amount of media interest from the UK Press, radio and television stations. Adrian said, ‘It all started on 5th August with a story in my local paper. I originally contacted the paper to put an advert in for our local youth football team. The lady at the paper asked me what I did and I said I was into Amateur Radio. She asked me if I had ever achieved anything and told her that I had built some nice radios, plus I had a contact with the International Space Station.’

‘It all started from there. She wrote a story and the next day, everything went mental. I had nine BBC stations alone contact me, then the BBC World Service turned up on my doorstep, CNN, Sky News, CBC, even Esquire Magazine, from Russia, I did thirteen Skype interviews in two days.’

He added, ‘One of the best things about this was that I got some serious media coverage for the Amateur radio hobby. I hope that a lot more people are more aware of Amateur radio and hope that it will inspire others into our great hobby.’

Icom UK would like to congratulate Adrian for creating such positive interest in the UK media, well done!